Letters To The Editor

July 18, 1998

ATTORNEY REBUTTED

On July 2, the Daily Press printed an article titled ``Partial-birth ban takes effect'' in which Karen Raschke, ``an attorney representing several abortion providers'' who oppose the ban, says she has two problems with the law.

The first is that she claims that the judge who upheld the law made a decision that ``ignores a Roe vs. Wade guarantee that abortion restrictions must include an exception when the health of the mother is at stake.''

This is a common complaint of those who oppose the ban. I refer Raschke, and others who have this concern, to the 10th paragraph of the very same article, which says that doctors will be imprisoned or fined for performing the procedure ``for reasons other than to save the life of the mother.'' There goes complaint No. 1.

Raschke's second complaint is that the judge did not address ``the Supreme Court guarantee than a woman has a right to an abortion until the fetus can survive on its own - roughly through the second trimester of a pregnancy. There is a greater chance that a second-trimester abortion could be viewed as a `partial-birth' abortion, and therefore deemed illegal - which would be unconstitutional.''

If, in fact, she supports the notion that abortions should be permitted through the second trimester because she doesn't think that the fetus of that stage of development can survive, I refer Raschke to the July 10 article, ``Full-term fetus almost mistakenly aborted.'' The clinic which was about to jab scissors into the fetus' head and vacuum out her brain delivered her instead, a 6-pound, 2-ounce girl with ``a skull fracture and cuts on her face.''

Although the heart is beating and the fetus can move her head, arms, legs and feet by the 14th week, the clinic performs abortions through the 24th week. And they are not alone.

John T. Jenkins

Hampton

HEROES WHO FIGHT

Mary Hatfield's July 14 letter ranting about columnist David Hackworth's legitimate criticism of former Chief of Naval of Operations, Jeremy Boorda, adds credibility to the parallel universe theory. In Hatfield's universe, military ``heroes'' tell only the CNN version of the truth. As the years go by, they repeatedly sell out their shipmates to the worshipers of ``political correctness'' in order to gain the nest promotion. Finally, when it becomes obvious that all the selling out has added up to an impotent military, incapable of defending the nation, Hatfield's ``hero'' again chooses the path of least resistance, and commits suicide.

I thank God I live in the opposite universe where our heroes fight the tough battles, speak up for an effective military made of the best warriors we can recruit, stand up for their troops, not allowing our armed forces to be used for social experimentation. Most importantly, our heroes face their mistakes with integrity. They don't need a post mortem rewrite of reality by their surviving political cronies to gloss over their final act of cowardice.

J. Tyler Ballance

Hampton

NO FORMAL AUTHORITY

Reference Mary Lynn Hatfield's July 14 comments about Adm. Boorda and Col. Dave Hackworth. There are no winners here, ma'am. Though it seems that the good admiral was ``allowed'' to wear the ``V'' devices, look closely at the fact that the ``permission'' wasn't official.

And despite what anyone tells us, there is only one source of ``approval'' for a Navy decoration (after the fact); the Board for Correction of Naval Records. Herein lie the politics and whitewashing we so commonly see in such ``high-level'' cases.

In 1996, former Defense Secretary William Perry told The Washington Times editorial board that Boorda ``should not have been wearing'' the combat devices. This week's official Navy position tracks with Perry's statement. While Adm. Walt Zumwalt and former Secretary of the Navy John H. Dalton may have tried to wave their wand over the unauthorized combat devices Boorda wore, there has been no formal change in the official Navy records of Boorda's authorized decorations. The only way to legally change these records is to petition the Board for Correction of Naval Records, and the board has not even petitioned to review the case.

If correction doesn't come from the board, there is no correction. Dalton and Zumwalt know this.

As for Hackworth, I defend his position as a watchdog for many in our society who no longer bite on the status quo ``line'' we get from government officials, especially GIs. I find much good to say about Hackworth's accomplishments, being one of the most decorated veterans in U.S military history.

Yes, he is very opinionated, but he stands for the average Joe.

Jerry Sharp

Newport News

THANKS FOR HELP

Hampton Ecumenical Lodgings and Provisions (HELP) is most grateful for the June 23 article, ``Opening doors to the homeless,'' by Greg Lohr. Lohr did a great job of capturing the spirit of the HELP Center and our new ministry, ``The Daily Partnership,'' that will begin this fall.